Category: Movie Review

Movie Review: Star Wars Episode IX: The Rise of Skywalker

Posted on December 20, 2019December 24, 2019 by Head Butler Ryan

– FULL SPOILER REVIEW –

Episode IX: The Rise of Skywalker attempts to both wrap up the sequel trilogy and offer a conclusion to the entirety of the Skywalker Saga, and while it accomplishes the goal of providing endings, through an adventure set on lightspeed the whole way through, stuffed to the gills with answers and revelations, and terrific performances from its actors once again, it’s too stuffed and too messy with both how it gets to those endings and what exactly is in those answers to all our burning questions, while plot jumps to the forefront over the characters. Overall, I still loved this giant mess of a film, but it is a mess nonetheless but there’s nothing that can be done about it. Turn back now, as this review will not shy away from spoilers! Continue reading “Movie Review: Star Wars Episode IX: The Rise of Skywalker” →

Movie Review: Solo – A Star Wars Story

Posted on May 26, 2018October 21, 2018 by Head Butler Ryan

— Spoiler-Free and Spoiler-Filled Reviews —

Solo: A Star Wars Story, written by Jon and Lawrence Kasdan, directed by Ron Howard, is an exciting, fun, adventure romp across the seedier parts of the galaxy, with a great cast that includes Alden Ehrenreich owning the role, a few pleasant surprises, and delightful winks and nods to other parts of the saga. It ends up being hampered by a rough beginning and some questionable decisions which affect investment, but despite its shortcomings, overall it can still be quite enjoyable. Continue reading “Movie Review: Solo – A Star Wars Story” →

Movie Review: Star Wars: The Last Jedi (By Chris)

Posted on December 19, 2017March 29, 2018 by Chris

-MASSIVE SPOILER REVIEW-

I don’t think I’ve ever met a Star Wars film I don’t like. That being said, I don’t know if I’ve ever walked out of a Star Wars film more torn asunder. The Last Jedi is not satisfied to give you a simple movie experience. Rather, the movie gives you meat to chew on for weeks and months to come; most viewers shouldn’t be able to come to an easy decision on the movie quickly. Read on to see how I wrestled with the film. (Be warned: I do not separate spoilers as Ryan did in his review!) Continue reading “Movie Review: Star Wars: The Last Jedi (By Chris)” →

Movie Review: Star Wars Episode VIII: The Last Jedi

Posted on December 17, 2017December 15, 2019 by Head Butler Ryan

— Spoiler-Free and Spoiler-Filled Reviews —

Star Wars Ep. VIII: The Last Jedi, written and directed by Rian Johnson, is many things: bold, thrilling, deep, emotional, action-packed, lengthy, unexpected, stuffed, humorous, which all combine into more than the sum of their parts, creating a film that’ll be oft-discussed and long remembered. The Spoiler-Free review gets things started below and the Spoiler-Filled one is clearly marked, so read on to find out what makes this film so special! Continue reading “Movie Review: Star Wars Episode VIII: The Last Jedi” →

Documentary Reviews: Elstree 1976 & I Am Your Father

Posted on April 4, 2017June 26, 2018 by Elliot

The making of the original Star Wars trilogy is stock full of adventure and pitfall nearly as famous as the on screen antics of Luke, Han and Leia. The telling of these behind the scenes stories is a crowded space (see for instance J.W Rinzler’s outstanding Making Of series) with newer additions sadly often treading familiar ground. It’s encouraging then to see a handful of documentary filmmakers looking for more obscure tales from those who may have been on the Star Wars set only for a day, or for a couple of weeks, but who nonetheless have carved their own little slice of history and have the scars to prove it. Continue reading “Documentary Reviews: Elstree 1976 & I Am Your Father” →

Movie Review: Rogue One – A Star Wars Story

Posted on December 16, 2016May 26, 2018 by Head Butler Ryan

— Spoiler-Free and Spoiler-Filled Reviews —

Rogue One – A Star Wars Story, directed by Gareth Edwards, is Star Wars like you’ve never really seen it before, but it still feels, looks, and sounds like it. This is the film’s greatest strength, as it takes what you already know about a galaxy far, far away and tells a new story through a different lens, providing plenty for long-time fans and relative newcomers to feast on and enjoy. It isn’t all perfect of course, like its slow but jumpy start and its great cast might not get all the time they deserve, but it’s a great benchmark for the A Star Wars Story line of films and a rousing kickoff to the venture. Continue reading “Movie Review: Rogue One – A Star Wars Story” →

Movie Review: Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens

Posted on December 18, 2015December 15, 2019 by Head Butler Ryan

— Spoiler-Free and Spoiler-Filled Reviews —

Whether you’ve been waiting nearly 40 years or 10, we’ve all had to the wait the last 3 years the same, but now Star Wars: The Force Awakens is finally here! Without a doubt it simply doesn’t matter how long you’ve waited for the film, as its excellently played new characters, rollicking adventurism, sense of humor, emotional heartbreak, nostalgia fueled story, and mythos expanding moments will bring out the kid in all of us. It’s a magnificent film, jolting the franchise with a breath of fresh Force, and it’ll long be debated on whether its the best Star Wars film or not. I don’t have my personal answer to that yet (I’m sure I will eventually), but it’s certainly in my top three and my review covers all the reasons why. (PLEASE NOTE: The spoilers are hidden at the very bottom of the review, even past all the links to my other reviews, so you’ll have to go out of your way to run into them!) Continue reading “Movie Review: Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens” →

Movie Review: Ant-Man

Posted on July 20, 2015February 7, 2016 by Head Butler Ryan

– Spoiler Review –

Marvel’s smallest hero comes to the biggest screens in Ant-Man, the origin story of Scott Lang’s character in the Marvel Cinematic Universe and also the final Phase 2 film. Taking advantage of its difference in tone and scale from previous MCU films, Ant-Man is an enjoyable stand-alone film supported by great performances with humor peppered throughout, but it has issues with a rather stereotypical villain and by-the-numbers origin story (while sneaking in some concepts which may play much bigger roles in the MCU to come); Overall, it’s definitely another solid notch in Marvel’s belt. Continue reading “Movie Review: Ant-Man” →

Movie Review: Mad Max: Fury Road

Posted on May 17, 2015February 7, 2016 by Head Butler Ryan

The Mad Max films have always had a special place in action film history, regarded as classics and the influence for many things since their release (like the Borderlands video games or all the Thunderdome “two must enter, one must leave” cultural references) and it’s hard to imagine a sequel/reboot some 30 years later ever being able to hold a candle to the originals. But Mad Max: Fury Road does just that and then some, not only setting itself apart and above the previous films, but finding a way to rise above most of the action films in the last few decades to roar into the top spot. It’s all largely thanks to the smooth pacing, Charlize Theron’s riveting performance, and spectacular (and non-CG) action sequences.

Continue reading “Movie Review: Mad Max: Fury Road” →

Movie Review: Avengers: Age of Ultron

Posted on May 5, 2015February 7, 2016 by Head Butler Ryan

– Light Spoiler Review –

Avengers: Age of Ultron is not the first Avengers film, which is a good thing because it should be something different. Age of Ultron is not the Avengers film you want it to be, which is a good thing because it can never be that. Instead, Age of Ultron is thoroughly entertaining but definitely imperfect, much like the heroes who inhabit the team, and its focus more on those people as it’s also forced to set up the grander tapestry of the web being spun by the Marvel Cinematic Universe is what makes it worthy the Avengers name. Continue reading “Movie Review: Avengers: Age of Ultron” →